THE STRANGERS: PREY AT NIGHT: Knocks A Bit Louder The Second Time Around

“Is Tamara home?”

Those who saw the first home invasion film in 2008, The Strangers, might remember the line. It is first spoken by a young girl, knocking on the door and blending into the darkness of night, as a tool to bait and unsettle the doomed couple, played by Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman. What follows is a night of horror from three masked killers.

Well, they’re back.

Bailee Madison plays the rebellious teenager Kinsey (evident from her incessant pout and cigarette smoking), who from the very beginning is distinguished as the central character of the movie. Her brother Luke (Lewis Pullman), and concerned parents (Christina Hendricks and Martin Henderson) make up the potential victims for Prey at Night. In this go around the appetite for a prospective murder spree is larger. While the dynamic is a bit different, much of the story is the same, and those new variables are what makes this second turn a more entertaining feat.

The Set Up

This family is struggling.

Though they don’t go into details regarding her actions, we know that Kinsey has been misbehaving for some time. This routine has got her parents stretched thin, both financially and emotionally. It also has her brother Luke resentful. This dysfunction makes for an awkward family trip, as they all jump in a minivan, to deliver her to boarding school.

On their way they decide to stay in a lakeside trailer park, courtesy of Cindy’s (Hendricks) aunt and uncle (who also meet the gruesome three in a sharp opening scene). This provides another remote setting, but the layout this time is significantly roomier, giving the characters adequate running space – which they’ll need. It also makes it more plausible for them to survive until morning. Or, at least it should.

When it comes to horror movies, it is common to put yourself into the situation. What would you do? Sometimes it leads to even cursing at the screen when the characters lack common sense and make fatal decisions. Prey at Night is no different, as there are still plenty of foolish choices to go around.

With a horror movie like this, it’s problematic to describe the plot in detail, for fear of losing its edge. Of course, you know there is a fight, and I will say that this sequel is significantly more gratifying for the viewer. As you might imagine, the children take the reins, and in the lean 85-minute movie, things move fast. This is also one of those “based on true events” films, a claim that’s both wildly vague and minimally factual. That tagline is just an unnecessary gimmick.

Three Steps Forward And One Step Back

While not as convincing as the original’s stars, the performances here work. Some of the dialogue tries too hard to be heartfelt, seeming forced. The script, by Bryan Bertino (writer and director of the first) and Ben Ketai, could have been tightened, but The Strangers: Prey at Night never suffers from being bland, or overly predictable, even when its strings are showing.

The film clearly takes inspiration from some of the home invasion and slasher films that came before it. It also brings to mind some of Adam Wingard’s films, like You’re Next and The Guest (which are superior), combining music and mayhem.

There are the expected jump scares, the killer that never seems to stay dead, and even the final scene that could be construed as cliffhanging, that almost erases the previous progress. Still, The Strangers: Prey at Night also has a few aesthetically pleasing shots, with sophisticated cinematography, and takes full advantage of the eeriness of night. There is plenty of credible fear manufactured.

One such scene is a fight for survival between Luke and one of our masked psychopaths, as Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” is blasted. An extended close-up shot of a body floating in the pool, struggling to stay afloat, water lapping into their mouth, is exceptionally crafted. There is also an earlier sequence, when one of the parents pleads for their child to run, knowing they probably won’t see them again that’ll hit you in the gut.

A bit imitative? Perhaps, but it uses those horror tropes as stepping stones, embracing them rather than being burdened. Director Johannes Roberts takes the sequel on, relying more on follow through than the previous film did, while still not providing significant answers. Who is this trio? Why are they doing this? In the original, when asked, the response was “Because you were home.” This time the sinister three is more exposed, and the response is “Why not?”, which somehow feels scarily pertinent.

Conclusion: The Strangers: Prey At Night

A decade later, astonishingly this throwback is preferable to the original. If you’re expecting to be blown away, or biting your nails in consistent apprehension, you’ll be let down. Compromise, and you’ll be entertained. The Strangers: Prey at Night and its moody semblance of survival, preserves dread just enough to deserve its place in slasher cinema.

What did you think? What do you look for in a horror, and did you find it here? Let us know in the comments below!

The Strangers: Prey at Night was released in the US on March 9, 2018 and will be released in the UK on April 20, 2018. For all international release dates, see here.